Warriors pull away late to snap Suns' 18-game win streak
Stephen Curry scored 23 points as the Golden State Warriors ended the Phoenix Suns' franchise-record 18-game winning streak by a score of 118-96 on Friday night.
With the victory, the 19-3 Warriors surpassed the 19-4 Suns for first place in the Western Conference standings.
The game was tight in the first half, with Golden State holding a slim 51-48 lead going into the break, but the Warriors used a 67-48 surge in the second frame to take control of the contest.
Golden State was on fire from 3-point range, drilling 19 of the team's 39 attempts from beyond the arc, including eight different players making at least one long ball.
The victory was just another display of home dominance for the Warriors, who have now tied an NBA record with 11 straight home victories by 13 points or more, according to ESPN's Matt Williams.
"You don't want them to come into your building and keep that streak going. Obviously, it doesn't mean much but just our 19th win, but it is nice to protect your home court," Curry said following the win, courtesy of ESPN's Nick Friedell.
"Something's got to give, and we've had a really good home record and nice streak going ourselves in this building, so we'd rather keep ours going than let theirs live."
Deandre Ayton led the way for Phoenix with 23 points in the loss. No other Suns player scored more than 12 in the club's sluggish offensive performance.
Mikal Bridges briefly left the contest for Phoenix with a dislocated finger but returned to the game.
"The winning streak was a lot of fun," Suns floor general Chris Paul said postgame. "It's been a long time since we felt a loss. But hell, let's start a new one."
Phoenix will look to return to winning ways when the team takes on the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.
Meanwhile, Golden State will attempt to keep its sparkling home stretch alive as the club hosts the Spurs on Saturday.